OVERCOMING THE ENVIRONMENTAL CONSEQUENCES OF THE ARMED AGGRESSION OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION AGAINST UKRAINE: FROM DAMAGE RECORDING TO FINANCED RESTORATION
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Abstract
The Russian Federation's armed aggression against Ukraine has caused environmental damage on an unprecedented scale in Europe since the Second World War. By June 2026, the State Environmental Inspectorate had calculated environmental losses exceeding 7 trillion UAH, while war-related greenhouse gas emissions had reached approximately 180 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent during the first thousand days of the full-scale invasion. Although Ukraine has built an extensive apparatus for recording such damage, recording alone cannot restore ecosystems. This article examines how international and national legal mechanisms interact to convert recorded damage into financed ecological restoration. The study employs comparative legal and institutional analysis and content analysis of European and Ukrainian legal acts, adopting a systems approach and drawing on the precedent of the United Nations Compensation Commission. The Commission awarded approximately 5.3 billion USD for environmental claims arising from the 1990–1991 Gulf conflict and monitored the spending of these funds through a dedicated follow-up programme. The analysis distinguishes three tiers: fixation, comprising national damage assessment methodologies and monitoring systems; attribution, comprising the Register of Damage and the International Claims Commission for Ukraine; and financing, comprising environmental taxation, carbon pricing and reconstruction funds. The first tier is operational, the second is incomplete pending the ratification process and the creation of a compensation fund, and the third is the weakest. The Ukrainian carbon tax of 30 UAH per tonne equates to 0.59 EUR, compared to an average of 53.63 EUR across Europe. Its revenues are earmarked for decarbonisation rather than restoring war-damaged ecosystems. The article also highlights a reconstruction paradox: simplifying environmental impact assessments in war-affected territories conflicts with the obligations of Chapter 27 of the accession negotiations. The recommendations focus on sequencing, earmarking, and institutional coordination.
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ecocide, compensation fund, Register of Damage, State responsibility, environmental taxation, carbon pricing, green recovery, EU accession
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